"You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain,
for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.” (Exodus
20:7 NKJV) *
What does it mean to take God’s Name in vain? Over the years, I often wondered about that. I have heard enough sermons and been to enough Sunday school classes, that it would seem that I might have learned it sooner. Even so, when my wife and I have read the Bible together, or when I have considered it on my own, I just couldn’t seem to put my finger on the full meaning of taking God’s Name in vain. For a long time, my best understanding was that it was a sin to use God’s Name as an epithet; a curse word. I felt there had to be more to it than that.
So, I looked it up. All of the commentators I read (Gill, Moody Bible, and Cambridge) agreed that taking the Name of God in vain involves more than just misusing it in swearing and cursing. It is any irreverence. That is, in addition to cursing, to take His Name in vain is to use God’s Name in a flippant, frivolous, or mocking way. Examples might include: “What in the name of G… were you thinking;” “For Chri… sake;” and, the ever popular, “OH MY G...” If God’s Name is used as a figure of speech, without the awe and reverence due to the great creator God and the Savior of humankind, that is taking the Name of God in vain.
It also involves false swearing or perjury. If we swear an oath under God in court without thinking reverently about who He is, or if we lie under oath, we take God’s Name in vain.
During His earthly ministry, people wanted to stone Jesus to death for blasphemy because He used the Name “I AM” in reference to Himself. (John 8:58-59) To the Christian, Jesus’ claim is proof that He is God. His testimony about Himself is enough because He was the embodiment of absolute truth. (John 14:6, Hebrews 6:18)
As Ronald Reagan said to Jimmy Carter, “There you go again.” Blasphemy is also a word that is heard without being understood. According to the Dictionary-Concordance in the back of my Bible, it means, “to speak carelessly, falsely, or insultingly about God or holy things.” ** Sounds a lot like taking God’s name in vain, doesn’t it?”
As explained in the post on 29 November 2019, God’s Name is more that just a identifying label. It is an expression of His character. It is not just what He is called, it is who He is. It reveals the essence of the Godhead that resides fully in each member of the Holy Trinity. Taking the Name of the Triune God, or any member of the Holy Trinity, in vain is to deny or trivialize the true Master of the Universe … the source of life and ruler of all things. ***
*https://www.biblestudytools.com/nkjv/exodus/20.html
** The NIV Giant Print Reference Bible (Grand Rapids, Michigan: The Zondervan Corporation, 1984) p. 1942
*** The Moody Bible Commentary (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2014). pp. 142, 143
